As will be known by those skilled in the art, swimming pools often collect a variety of debris such as leaves, twigs, seeds and other bits and pieces of foliage as well as numerous types of insects. The debris is generally airborne and may initially float on the surface of the water until sufficient water is absorbed by the debris such that it then moves to lower depths of the pool. This floating and submerged debris is highly undesirable to swimmers and generally detracts from the aesthetic value of the pool.
A number of devices have been developed in the art for dealing with pool debris. On the most basic level, debris can be removed from the surface of the pool water through the use of a net on the end of a pole. These manual skimmers are labor-intensive and do not provide a continuous skimming of the surface; that is, they are effective only when manually used to remove debris. While some debris may be removed by filters in association with the pump which circulates the pool water, these types of filters are actually designed more to protect the pump from clogging as a result of a buildup of debris than for providing an efficient means for cleaning the pool water.
Recognizing the desirability of providing a passive pool skimmer, the art has developed a number of approaches. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,369,109 a skimming net for cleaning floating debris from the surface of a pool has a frame which is attached to a side portion of the pool and extends outwardly into the water. A net is slidably positionable over the frame. A quick disconnect assembly is provided for removing the frame and the net from the pool to clear the debris. The frame is rigidly mounted to the edge of the pool with a bracket or the like.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,173,181, a pool skimming apparatus is disclosed in which a "butterfly net" (i.e. in the nature of a bag) is mounted by quick disconnects to a rigid bracket that is attached to the side of the pool.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,422,001, a pool skimmer is disclosed in which a bracket is mounted to the side of the pool. The frame is formed of an upper horizontal tube in an inverted U-shape configuration. The device includes a buoyancy component.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,920, a recoil web pool skimmer is described in which a recoiling roll of screening in association with a rotatable spool is disclosed. The screen roll is vertically oriented on a mounting frame which is affixed to the side of the pool.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,625,364, a skimming device is described in which a pole supports a rectangular screen into the pool water. The pole is rigidly connected to the side of the pool. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,288,414, a pool skimming device in the nature of a net attached to an oval frame is described which is rigidly connected to the side of the pool. Finally, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,277,810, a pool skimmer is disclosed in which a net is suspended from a longitudinal pole which is rigidly mounted to the side of the pool.
The above-described passive skimming devices rely on movement of water through the net in order to collect the debris. They are generally designed such that the net or the frame can be detached to allow the debris to be removed from the screen. Although they may include quick disconnects, they are still rather unwieldly to use in terms of clearing the debris from the net. In addition, they generally require either a custom bracket to fit the edge of the pool, or require that holes be drilled in the side of the pool for attachment. With such means of attachment, little option is provided to optimize the position of the net with respect to the particular pool for the most efficient collection of debris. In addition, these rigidly mounted nets are relatively immovable and may cause injury to a swimmer, particularly one surfacing under or in the vicinity of the net.
Thus, it would be desirable to provide a passive pool skimmer which solves the problems of the prior art which is easily and inexpensively manufactured and which provides pool skimming action. The present invention meets these objectives.